Swim over and check me out on Fear the Fin
Photo courtesy of http://www.fearthefin.com
As 2011 draws to close out here on the West Coast, I figured this would be the perfect time to update you all as to my whereabouts since the conclusion of the 2011 YoungStars Tournament.
Back in August, I was brought on board to Fear the Fin as their Worcester Sharks columnist due to the work I did over the summer with my research articles. Since the start of the 2011-12 season, I have had a weekly post on Fear the Fin titled, “Woo Rewind,” where I recap the Worcester Sharks’ action from the previous week. In addition, I have conducted interviews with players on the Worcester Sharks and posted a couple of San Jose Sharks game previews.
None of that would’ve been possible had it not been for the people who believed in me when I started on here back in February and those who didn’t strangle me when I kept tweeting them or emailing them the links to my posts. To all those people, I cannot thank you enough. I also cannot forget to thank the players who were kind enough to take 5-10 minutes and be interviewed via email for my blog.
For now, this will be the last post on Finz and Stitches. The blog will stay up as I put way too much time and work into it. Who knows, perhaps it’ll become similar to David Pollak’s “Working the Corner” blog and be nothing but Worcester Sharks news and notes if I get offered a chance to work for them.
Thank you again to everyone who read all 117 posts here and encouraged me to keep pursuing my dream. Who knows where I’ll be at this time in a year but if 2011 was any indication, I’m totally excited for 2012.
As a bonus, here are my works from Fear the Fin since September. Please enjoy.
One-one-one Interviews
Jimmy Bonneau
Mike Moore
Mike Connolly
Matt Irwin
Cam MacIntyre
Woo Rewind
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
Week 6
Week 7
Week 8
Week 9
Week 10
Week 11
Week 12
San Jose Game Previews
Dec. 10 vs. St. Louis Blues
Dec. 15 vs. Colorado Avalanche
“Hits and Misses” for Sharks at Canucks in 2011 Young Stars Tournament
Result: SHARKS 3, Canucks 5 {Sharks finish Young Stars Tournament with a 1-2 record}
Sharks forward Nathan Moon, seen here against Winnipeg on Monday night, scored two goals in the second period against the Vancouver Cancuks Wednesday evening. Photo courtesy of Winnipeg Sun
HITS
Ben Thomson – Thomson scored his first goal of the 2011 Young Stars Tournament at 6:30 of the first period to give the Sharks an early 1-0 lead. With the puck in the Canucks zone, Sharks defenseman Zach Bell fired a shot on net from the top of the blueline that was deflected in front of the goalie crease Sharks forward Freddie Hamilton, who was battling for position in front of Canucks goalie David Honzik. First to the loose puck, Thomson corralled the puck onto his stick and buried home a goal with a shot from in-between the two face-off circles in the slot.
Nathan Moon – Moon scored his first two goals of the 2011 Young Stars Tournament at 1:03 and 7:11 of the second period respectively. With the Sharks on a power play, Sharks defenseman Antoine Corbin dumped the puck into the Canucks zone from center ice. Honzik came out of his goalie crease to play the puck behind his net but had a miscommunication with his teammate and gave the puck right to Moon, who quickly put the puck into the open net to give the Sharks a 2-1 lead……..Moon’s second goal also came on the power play and gave the Sharks a 3-2 lead. With the puck inside the Canucks zone, Sharks defenseman Sena Acolatse sent a pass across the blueline to Corbin, who created space with a quick move before passing the puck down to Moon, who was positioned on the high side of the goal line near the goalie crease. With his head on a swivel, Moon attempted a quick pass down to linemate Mike Connolly, who was open on the opposite side of the goalie crease, but the puck deflected off the stick of Canucks defenseman Anthony Zanetti, who was positioned between Moon and Connolly, and into the Canucks net for the goal.
Michael Sgarbossa – While Sgarbossa didn’t registered a point, he did use his speed to draw a hooking penalty that resulted in Moon’s second power play goal of the game. In addition, Sgarbossa did something after the game that shocked many viewers {and the Canucks broadcasters} when he dropped gloves and fought Canucks forward Alex Friesen. Giving up 16 pounds to Friesen, Sgarbossa landed several hard shots that rocked and stunned Friesen before taking each other down to the ice.
Sena Acolatse – In addition to his excellent two-way play, Acolatse logged the most ice minutes for the Sharks tonight, registering an assist and gave Worcester Sharks fans another glimpse of what they can expect from his this upcoming season by demonstrating how hard his shot is. Acolatse’s shot is so hard that he broke two hockey sticks tonight when going for his cannonading shot.
Zach Bell – Bell came up a goal short of registering a “Gordie Howe Hat Trick” as he registered an assist on the Thomson goal and dropped the gloves with Canucks forward Antoine Roussel in the second period. The fight was Bell’s second of the tournament.
Invitees – Of all the invitees that played for the Sharks in this year’s Young Stars Tournament, there were four players that I was truly impressed and those four were Bell, Moon, Charles Inglis and Scooter Vaughan. I would love to see Bell offered a contract just so Sharks fans can say, “Ring the Bell” everytime he drops the gloves. On a serious note, he showed good awareness when on the ice and contributed with solid play. Moon, Inglis and Vaughan are all reliable, solid two-way forwards who can play both special teams {power play and penalty kill}. In addition, Inglis and Vaughan demonstrated they can use their speed to make something out of nothing and can generate scoring chances by using their speed. All of these players would be welcomed additions to the Sharks organization and I truly hope they are signed.
MISSES
Sharks Team – After outscoring the Calgary Flames 6-1 Sunday evening in the first game of the 2011 Young Stars Tournament, the Sharks were outscored in their final two games by a combined score of 9-3. Even worse is the fact that the Sharks had the lead three different times tonight against the Canucks {1-0, 2-1, 3-2} and still came out on the short end.
J.P. Anderson – Seeing his first action in net since taking over for Thomas Heemskerk halfway through the Flames game, Anderson allowed more goals tonight {five} than he did in both of his starts in the 2010 Young Stars Tournament {four}. After making an unbelievable left pad save in the opening minutes of the game, Anderson, who finished with 19 saves, never got into his zone that {Mississauga} Majors and Sharks fans have come to expect. To be fair though, Anderson couldn’t have done anything on a couple of the goals. Prab Rai‘s goal at 3:51 of the second period that tied the game at 2-2 was one of the luckiest goals scored in the tournament as his shot from in-between the two face-off circles pinballed in front of traffic near the goalie crease before squeaking past Anderson for the goal.……Adam Polasek‘s power play goal at 14:25 of the second period, which gave the Canucks their first lead of the game at 4-3, was the result of traffic being in front of Anderson, who wasn’t able to track the puck once it left Polasek’s stick at the blueline.
Sharks Defense – Three of the Canucks’ five goals were scored due to miscues by the Sharks defenders. The first Canucks goal, which was scored by Steven Janes at 11:33 of the first period to tie the game at 1-1, came as the result of a turnover inside the Sharks zone by Bell, who failed to clear the puck once near the blueline. Bell’s partner, Corbin, committed a defensive sin by watching the puck instead of playing the body as he allowed Canucks forward Michael Curtis to skate into the slot before passing the puck over to James, who was positioned in the lower face-off circle, for the one timer goal.…..In the second period, Sharks defenseman Justin Sefton was beat to a loose puck by Canucks forward Darren Archibald, who played the puck off the lower side board inside the Sharks zone after a stretch pass from teammate Anton Rodin. Skating in on Anderson, Archibald let loose a snap shot from inside the lower face-off circle that beat Anderson through the five-hole for the game tying {3-3} goal at 11:42.…..In the third period, Corbin was picked on again by the Canucks as Rodin scored in the game’s final minutes to seal a 5-3 win for the Canucks. Playing the puck off the lower side board inside the Sharks zone after a stretch pass from Polasek, Roudin used his speed to beat Corbin, went wide, cut in on Anderson and scored a beauty of a goal.
LINE PAIRINGS
Line 1: Brodie Reid / Nathan Moon / Mike Connolly{A}
Line 2: Dylan Wruck / Michael Sgarbossa / Scooter Vaughan{A}
Line 3: Trevor Cheek / Freddie Hamilton / Ben Thomson
Line 4: Joe Antilla / Charles Inglis / Curt Gogol
D1: Antoine Corbin / Zach Bell
D2: Sena Acolatse{A} / Dylan DeMelo
D3: William Wrenn / Justin Sefton
G: J.P. Anderson / Thomas Heemskerk
“Hits and Misses” for Jets at Sharks in 2011 Young Stars Tournament
Result: Jets 4, SHARKS 0 Next Game: Sept. 14, Sharks @ Canucks, 4:00 PM PT
Photo courtesy of http://www.sharksahl.com
HITS
Michael Sgarbossa – For the second consecutive game, Sgarbossa was the standout Shark as he was always around the puck in the all three zones of the ice. His body must be part magnetic because once inside the offensive zone, the puck seemed to gravitate towards him once he was in either scoring position {He was robbed of several goals by Jets goalie Edward Pasquale, including a laser shot from in-between the top of the two face-off circles late in the third period} or a position to set-up a teammate for a scoring opportunity. His line with Dylan Wruck and James Livingston was easily the best Sharks line all game and most consistent with their cycle and generated scoring chances.
Sena Acolatse – Acolatse is perhaps the most poised Sharks prospect defenseman with the puck. He is always aware of his surroundings {sacrificed his body in front of goalie Thomas Heemskerk to break up a Jets scoring chance after a turnover at center ice in the third period}, keeps his head on a swivel {evident by his long stretch pass to Freddie Hamilton in the first period that nearly resulted in a goal} and glides with ease once he’s in possession of the puck. In addition, his rocket shot from the blueline is lethal and will cause goalies in the AHL this upcoming season headaches on a nightly basis.
Physical Play – While they may not have generated many scoring chances, the overall play of Charles Inglis, Scooter Vaughan and Curt Gogol was quite impressive. Vaughan continuously put his body on a jets player all game with solid checking while Gogol and Inglis showed they can be an asset on the penalty kill with their solid defensive play. Inglis himself generated a scoring chance out of nothing late in the third period while on the penalty kill and moments later, drew a power play opportunity for the Sharks with his relentless pursuit of the puck. Gogol displayed how good he can be when he’s disciplined and won his scrap with Klarc Wilson in the second period after landing a huge haymaker. Lastly, Sharks defenseman Zach Bell had a rock-em, sock-em scrap with Austen Brassard midway through the second period that started in the Jets zone and ended at center ice. Bell land shot after shot to Brassard before both men went down to the ice.
Penalty Kill – The Sharks were a perfect 5-for-5 in killing off the Jets power play opportunities. The Sharks had tremendous zone movement and their pressure forced the Jets shooters to keep the puck out on the perimeter, resulting a majority of the Jets shot attempts being blocked or easily saved by Heemskerk.
Thomas Heemskerk – Heemskerk was solid in net again for the Sharks, stopping 18-of-21 shots, and the goals scored on him were from in close on breakaways and an odd man rush. For the tournament, Heemskerk has stopped 45-of-48 shots for a 0.9375 save percentage and a 1.5 goals-against-average.
MISSES
Sharks Team – Coming off a 6-1 victory over the Calgary Flames prospect team Sunday evening, the Sharks prospects appeared to be a little too full of themselves when taking the ice tonight for their second game in the Young Stars Tournament, and learned a valuable lesson tonight in that they cannot get too full of themselves based on the results of one game. There is a huge difference between being confident and having too much swag. To make it to the next level, one cannot get too high on themselves or too low.
First Period - Despite allowing only seven shots on goal in the first period, the Jets scored on two of those shots in a 6:13 span to lead 2-0 at the end of the period. Levko Koper scored the game winning goal for the Jets at 9:11 of the period to give the Jets an early 1-0 lead. With the puck inside the Jets zone, Jets defenseman Sebastian Owuya softly chipped the puck out of the zone off the lower side glass and pass Bell, who was pinching up on the play in the neutral zone. Koper tracked down the loose puck, rushed into the Sharks zone from the left side board, cut in front on Heemskerk and scored on a shot that barley squirted by Heemskerk {Koper would add an empty net goal at 19:14 of the third period to seal the 4-0 victory}…………Mark Scheifele, the Jets’ first round draft pick in this year’s NHL Entry Draft, gave the Jets a 2-0 lead at 15:24 of the period with his short-handed breakaway goal. With the Sharks on a power play and puck possession inside the Jets zone, the Sharks turned the puck over at the blueline, and Scheifele tracked down the loose puck in the neutral zone, skated in all alone on Heemskerk, went forehand-to-backhand and put the puck upstairs for the goal.
Third Period – Only trailing the Jets 2-0 entering the final frame, the Sharks’ comeback hopes were quickly dashed as Jason Gregoire scored just 22 seconds into the period on a 2-on-1 rush to put the Jets up 3-0. With Sharks defenseman William Wrenn caught alone, Scheifele skated into the Sharks zone with Gregoire and threaded pass through Wrenn’s legs down to Gregoire, who quickly fired a shot on net for the goal.
Power Play – Despite having several opportunities with the man advantage, including a 6-on-4 advantage in the final minutes of the game after pulling Heemskerk for an extra skater, the Sharks were unable to capitalize on their power play chances and surrendered two short-handed goals in the process {Scheifele goal and Koper empty netter}. The Sharks prospects did have good puck movement once they established their power play unit inside the Jets zone but were hesitant to shoot at times and continued to pass the puck along the perimeter.
LINE PAIRINGS
Line 1: Trevor Cheek / Freddie Hamilton / Scooter Vaughan
Line 2: Dylan Wruck / Michael Sgarbossa / James Livingston{A}
Line 3: Joe Antilla / Nathan Moon / Brodie Reid
Line 4: Ben Thomson / Charles Inglis / Curt Gogol
D1: Konrad Abeltshauser / Zack Bell
D2: Antoine Corbin / Sena Acolatse{A}
D3: Taylor Doherty{A} / William Wrenn
G: Thomas Heemskerk / J.P. Anderson
“Hits and Misses” for Sharks at Flames in 2011 Young Stars Tournament
Result: SHARKS 6, Flames 1 Next Game: Sept. 12, Jets @ Sharks, 7:30 PM PT
San Jose Sharks forward Michael Sgarbossa had a two point night {goal, assist} to help lead the Sharks to a 6-1 victory over the Calgary Flames at the 2011 Young Stars Tournament. Photo courtesy of espn.go.com
HITS
Charles Inglis – Inglis scored his first goal of the 2011 Young Stars Tournament on the Sharks’ first shot of the game at 3:13 of the first period to give the Sharks an early 1-0 lead. After Flames goalie Joni Ortio misplayed the puck behind his own net and turned it over to Sharks forward Ben Thomson, Thomson quickly fired a pass down to linemate Joe Antilla, who fired a shot towards the open net from the lower face-off circle that was stopped by the stick of a Flames player in the goalie crease. However, as the Flames began to breakout of their own zone, Flames defenseman Christopher Breen turned the puck over at the top of the slot to Inglis, who quickly fired a laser of a shot on net that beat Ortio for the goal.
Michael Sgarbossa – Sgarbossa had a two point night {goal, assist} and scored his first goal of the 2011 Young Stars Tournament on the Sharks’ second shot of the game at 5:45 of the first period to give the Sharks a 2-0 lead. Cleanly carrying the puck out of his own zone, Sgarbossa got the puck over to linemate Brodie Reid on the lower side board. Once at the Flames blueline, Reid passed the puck back to Sgarbossa, who found a seam and sniped the puck past Ortio top shelf on the stick side for the goal.
Trevor Cheek – Cheek scored his first goal of the 2011 Young Stars Tournament at 7:46 of the second period to give the Sharks a 3-0 lead. Battling for the puck near the Flames blueline, Sharks forward Nathan Moon, who had chased the loose puck down from the neutral zone, chipped the puck past Flames defenseman TJ Brodie and somehow, the puck landed on the stick of Cheek. With the puck on his stick, Cheek made a strong move to the net and fired a backhand shot on net that squeezed/trickled through the legs of Ortio for the goal.
Curt Gogol – Gogol scored his first goal of the 2011 Young Stars Tournament at 16:00 of the second period to give the Sharks a 4-0 lead. Relentlessly pursuing the puck with a strong forecheck, Moon was able to cause a turnover inside the Flames zone after Breen softly chipped the puck off the lower side boards. Gogol was able to intercept the clear attempt and displayed his sweet hands by going backhand-to-forehand while skating in on Ortio before scoring top shelf for the goal.
Brodie Reid – Reid had a two point night {goal, assist} and scored his first goal of the 2011 Young Stars Tournament at 0:53 of the third period to give the Sharks a 5-0 lead. With the puck inside the Flames’ zone, Sgarbossa sent a beauty of a cross ice/zone pass to Reid, who was positioned near the high end board on the goal line. With the puck on his stick, Reid fired an off-angle shot on net that banked in right off of Ortio. Does anyone else think that Reid worked his tail off this game to prove that his former Northeastern head coach, Greg Cronin, was wrong with his comments this past spring after Reid announced he was leaving the university? {You can read those comments by clicking HERE}
Sena Acolatse – Acolatse scored his first goal of the 2011 Young Stars Tournament at 7:53 of the third period to give the Sharks a 6-0 lead. With the Sharks on a Power Play and himself positioned near the lower side board, Acolatse ripped a slapshot blast from just inside the blueline that ricocheted off the stick of two Flames players before beating Ortio high on the glove side for the goal.
Thomas Heemskerk – Only playing the first 30 minutes of the game, Heemskerk played outstanding and stood on top of his head by stopping all 26 shots he faced. In the first period, Heemskerk made 16 saves, including a breakaway opportunity for Maxwell Reinhart, who had two point blank opportunities after beating Sharks defenseman Taylor Doherty to the loose puck in the neutral zone while the Sharks were on the Power Play.
J.P. Anderson – Reliving Heemskerk of goaltending duties midway through the second period, Anderson was outstanding as well in net for the Sharks, stopping12-of-13 shots he faced. The lone shot that beat Anderson for a goal was Roman Horak‘s penalty shot that just barley trickled past Anderson’s pads on the right side after Horak went five hole with a backhand shot. The goal came in the game’s final several minutes.
Nathan Moon – While Moon did not score a goal, he did register an assist and his strong forecheck play and relentless pursuit of loose pucks resulted in two Sharks goals {Cheek and Gogol}
Sharks Team – Despite being outshot by the Flames 39-26 for the game {16-4 after first period, 29-11 after second period}, the Sharks, who only returned eight players from last year’s Young Stars Tournament, were able to capitalize on their scoring chances by remaining poised and composed, which can be attributed to head coach Roy Sommer, who is also the head coach of the Worcester Sharks. In addition, the Sharks were anchored by unbelievable goaltending from both Heemskerk and Anderson.
MISSES
First Period – Despite leading 2-0 after the first period, the score did not tell the whole story of the period as the Sharks were outshot 16-4 and could have found themselves trailing early had it not been for Heemskerk’s performance in net. The Sharks spent way too much time skating around in their own zone as the result of turnovers and not being able to clear the puck out. The team did get better as the game went along but the Sharks cannot have a repeat of that kind of start in their upcoming games against the Winnipeg Jets and Vancouver Canucks. One can only play with fire so much before they are eventually burned.
Curt Gogol – While Gogol did get a “hit” for his beauty of a goal, Gogol gets a “miss” because of the undisciplined penalty he took in the second period shortly after Cheek’s goal. Yes, Gogol’s game is that of a physical presence but he has to be smart about when he retaliates against an opposing player. The knock on Gogol his entire WHL career has been his discipline, something he has committed himself to improving upon ever since being traded to the Chilliwack Bruins this past WHL season. I would love to see more of the scoring skills Gogol displayed tonight while harnessing that edge he plays with into a controlled frenzy that allows him to be smart with his physical play.
LINE PAIRINGS
Line 1: James Livingston / Freddie Hamilton / Mike Connolly{A}
Line 2: Brodie Reid / Michael Sgarbossa / Dylan Wruck
Line 3: Trevor Cheek / Nathan Moon / Curt Gogol
Line 4: Ben Thomson / Charles Inglis / Joe Antilla
D1: Konrad Abeltshauser / Taylor Doherty{A}
D2: Sena Acolatse{A} / Antoine Corbin
D3: Dylan DeMelo / Justin Sefton
G: Thomas Heemskerk / J.P. Anderson
